2009 Weaving and Freeform Fiberarts trip to Peru
Monday, June 1
Travel to Lima
Tuesday, June 2, LIMA
Upon your arrival in Lima, we will provide assistance at the airport and transfer you to the hotel.
Tour the colonial landmarks and monuments that earned the historical center of Lima inclusion in UNESCO'S World Heritage list. Start by visiting the Casa Aliaga, Peru's best preserved colonial mansion, occupied by the same family since 1535! You'll also visit the Cathedral. Lunch at "La Rosa Nautica", where you will have a show of how the traditional dish Ceviche is made by the restaurant's chef. La Rosa Nautica is an elegant Victorian style restaurant that offers a complete selection of Peruvian and International cuisine.
Enjoy the afternoon relaxing or take a drive to the Pueblo Libre district to visit the Larco Herrara Museum which holds the most extensive collection of Pre-Columbian art in Peru and if time permits, a stroll through a Peruvian handicraft market.
Discover your inner artist on Tuesday night with an introduction to Freeform Fiberart with Myra Wood who will also have a trunk show of her work available to see.
Wednesday, June 3, LIMA/CUSCO
Enjoy breakfast in the hotel and then we'll transfer you to the airport and provide assistance with your travel to Cusco.
Upon arrival, you will be transported to the hotel where you can relax the rest of the morning and adjust to the altitude.
Then you'll tour the Cathedral of Cusco which contains over 400 paintings from the Cusquena School. We continue on to the Temple of the Sun, the main religious center of the Incas.
*Each evening when you return to the hotel, you are welcome to enjoy a leisurely workshop with Myra and learn tons of new knit and crochet stitches and freeform techniques.
Thursday, June 4, CUSCO/URUBAMBA
After a lovely breakfast, travel to the Urumba Valley, the Sacred Valley of the Incas. You will be welcomed at Chincheros by a colorful music band. Wander the market and explore the native handicrafts. We'll have lunch in a typical Peruvian local restaurant.
The rest of the afternoon is devoted to the Natural Dye Workshop where you'll share an experience with a group of master weavers who've been working together for 28 years.
Friday, June 5, URUBAMBA
Enjoy breakfast in the hotel and then you'll tour Acha Alta, a very interesting, traditional community where they weave with a supplementary warp technique for very wide designs. You'll also see Peruvian knitting, known for it's fine detail and interesting technique.
From there, you'll travel to Huayocari to get acquainted with the lifestyle of the Cusquenians and lunch at Casa Hacienda Orihuela which also houses a wide collection of popular and colonial art, ceramics, paintings and other treasures, settled among a forest of Eucalyptus trees. You'll also see a wonderful textile demonstration. Then it's off to Willoq, a community of 200 farming families where the women preserve their unique and ancient tradition of weaving. Willoq is a living cultural experience.
Saturday, June 6, URUBAMBA
Breakfast is served followed by a full day devoted to the learning of the different techniques: learn to make their first narrow backstrap looms, starting with twenty or thirty threads. Learn also about de Andean hat scallop knitting, tubular weaving . You'll also receive a complete Peruvian Weaving Kit. Enjoy a lovely box lunch and feel free to wander in the evening or enjoy another workshop.
Sunday, June 7, MACHU PICCHU
After a wonderful breakfast, you'll take the train to Agua Caliente and upon arrival , enjoy a 25 minute coach ride to "The City of The Lost Incas". Then enjoy a guided tour of the marvelous citadel, an awe-inspiring experience. Later, feel free to stroll around the archeological site. You'll have lunch at the Machu Picchu Sanctuary lodge and stay in the area at a wonderful hotel overnight.
Monday, June 8, MACHU PICCHU, CUSCO
Make sure to wake up bright and early to catch a glorious sunrise over Machu Piccu for a once in a lifetime experience! Then enjoy a leisurly breakfast and if you enjoy hiking, you'll have an opportunity to climb to the peak of Huayna Piccu or just explore the area to see it's many wonders. In the afternoon we'll return to Cusco by rail where you'll stay for the evening.
Tuesday, June 9, CUSCO
Breakfast is served followed by visiting the ancient ruins of the Inca empire that surround Cusco stating with the Kenko amphitheater to see all of the intricate carvings and then explore hidden underground passageways. You'll also visit the cultural center of Sacsayhuaman, the Inca temple and the Red Fortress of Puca Pucara. Dinner this evening will also include a festive folkloric show.
Wednesday, June 10, LIMA/CUSCO
After a leisurely breakfast we'll assist your departure and return to the airport where you'll fly to Lima for a traditional lunch. From Lima you'll return home or fly off to an optional trip to the Amazon forest in Tambopata where you'll experience guided excursion in groups with a bilingual tourist guide.
OPTIONAL TRIP to the AMAZON RAINFOREST:
Wednesday, June 10, CUSCO/PUERTO MALDONADO/TAMBOPATA
We'll assist your flight to Puerto Malsonado and transfer to the pier where you'll take a 2 hour boat ride up the Tambopata River to the Posada Amazonas Lodge, a native community-based, eco-friendly Lodge providing First-class accommodations. The lodge was constructed using native materials such as wood, bamboo, and clay. All rooms have private bathrooms and an open picture window with a view of the forest. During the trip, several bird species typical of the river and forest edge may be spotted. Dinner and accommodation at the lodge are included.
Thursday, June 11, TAMBOPATA
After an early breakfast, you'll take a short boatride followed by a half hour walk to the Tres Chimbadas Oxbow Lake where you can canoe along the edge to admire fauna including giant otters, exotic turtles and Hoatzin birds. Explore the surroundings or enjoy a dip in the lake! After lunch, we'll visit a native slash and burn farm to learn how this system, once thought to be wasteful can actually be sustainable over the long term. We'll return to the lodge for a delicious dinner and an optional night walk to observe the nocturnal wildlife.
Friday June 12, TAMBOPATA/PUERTO MALDONADO/LIMA
After breakfast, enjoy the return trip to Puerto Maldonado and then on to Lima. You'll be assisted along the entire journey with whatever you need for transfers. Once in Lima, you'll have plenty of time to explore the city and see a panoramic tour of the City of Kings. You'll also visit the historic Plaza Mayor with a view of the government palace, city hall and the Archbishop's palace. You'll also visit the San Francisco Monastery, a work of extraordinary Colonial architecture. Finish your tour with a drive through the residential districts of Miraflores and San Isidro, where you will enjoy a magnificent view of the Pacific Ocean.
Lunch at "Casa Hacienda Moreyra", an ancient Hacienda house Isidro de Abarca, dated from XVIII, currently a spectacular center, where relics and the architectural style of Hacienda home from past times is preserved. From there you will be returned to the airport for your trip home.
